Sacrifice at 12

June 30th 2012

I awoke from my bedroom. It was a worm summer morning in Vegas. I remember the warm sweat on my brow as I came to. Sitting up on my twin mattress, it dawned upon me that today was the day. My father and I were heading to Walmart to purchase an above ground pool. This had become a summer family tradition. Last year, we had a blast. If was because of that leather blue intex ball of fun that the neighborhood liked me! I had 30 kids come over last year and swim in a circle for an hour and created a massive whirl pool and the challenge was to try and swim against it! But this morning was different. Something was off. I didnt let it bother me. We proceeded to Walmart as planned.

When we got to the supercenter on Charelston and Decatur, we had one objective, to find the 500 gallon behemoth. As we stood in line (which averages 45 mins in any Las Vegas Walmart) the anxiety was getting to me. I wanted to get home, set up this damn pool and have fun. I had just "graduated " from middle school. Freshman year at Canyon Springs/ The Law and Leadership Academy was getting to me. And I was willingly in a Walmart. I was going crazy. There was one problem. My father's card had gotten declined. Again, this set off any internal alarm saying something is not right. What the financial issue was I don't recall, but after another hour we walked out with the blue beast of a pool.

By the time we had brought the beast home, it was well over 100°F. As we setup the legs of the pool, the white legs that create the structure were burning everyone's hands. You can hear the skin cooking while assembling them. My entire family helped with the beast's construction. 3pm rolls around and now my job was two fold: to stretch out the rubber bottom and find rocks that could pierce that floor, and to watch my two younger brothers M&L. This would be there second summer with a pool of the caliber. L had just turned 2 and M had his third birthday approaching in August. They kept me company while I was more worried about the bottom of the pool.

Late that evening I returned to the pool and installed the filter. The pool was about half filled. I got out and threw in the ladder. That evening I was raped by my mother and then went to bed.